Bucharest - bike ride in the Herastrau Park

While we were in the bus on our way to Romania, my dad told us that Bucharest was often referred to as "Paris of the East" or "Little Paris". My eyebrows rose in disbelief; Paris? I highly doubt it, I thought to myself. I can't really detect where these preconceived notions came from, but I really had rather low expectations for this country - I'd been to the rest of the Balkans already, and I didn't think that the hidden gems could lie in this last one. You can probably see where this is going; in an unexpected turn of events, Romania and its capital city totally blew me away.

My number one favorite thing in Bucharest was the beautiful Herastrau Park - an ideal place for many different activities. The park was created around the natural lake Herastrau and it features many attractions, such as the Elisabeta Palace (the current residence of the Romanian royal family) and the Village Museum (an open-air ethnographic museum showcasing life in Romanian villages). We decided that a bike ride was the best way to explore the park; of course we didn’t have our own, but we rented bikes from a rental right outside the park.

We visited Bucharest in April, and the gardens were at the peak of their blossoming. I still remember the gorgeous sight of the “Rose Island”, a small artificial island where the paths were quite literally lined with roses. After hours of cycling, we sat down to have a snack - sort of like a small picnic - and later on we decided to dine at a restaurant by the lake. I believe this park could have kept me busy for an entire day or even two, so I’d definitely love to go back and explore it further. The same goes for the rest of the city, and even for the rest of Romania. I know it's a cliche, but I'll say it; traveling is a great way to fight prejudice.

(photo: www.bucharestapartments.net)

Tags: #bucharest #romania #herastrau #park #bike #ride